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monthly news from ASAP | FEBRUARY 2022 | asapconnections.org
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Join Us for the Asheville CSA Fair on March 11
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Joining a CSA (or Community Supported Agriculture) program connects you directly with local farms in your community. Interested in learning more or talking to farmers to see if a CSA is a good fit for you? Come to our Asheville CSA Fair on March 11, from 4 to 7 p.m., at the YWCA of Asheville.
Participating farms include Blazing Star Flowers, Creekside Farm, Encompass Farm, Feed Asheville Farm, Fiddlesticks Farm, Lunar Whale Herbs, Oak Holler Farm, Olivette Farm, and Tiny Bridge Farm. Learn more about the farms and get and overview of what they offer. ASAP's Hendersonville CSA Fair took place Feb. 10, but details about the farms participating is still available at the link above.
Not able to attend the event, or interested in finding CSA farms elsewhere in the region? Check out Full Share, our annual guide to CSA farms. You can find the free print edition at farmers markets and community locations around the region, or look at the digital version here.
Hear more about why CSAs are beneficial for farmers and customers in our Faces of Local interview with farmer Noel Poindexter of Lunar Whale Herbs below.
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Business of Farming Conference Is Next Week
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 We're so excited to be back in person with our Business of Farming Conference next week! The event is Saturday, Feb. 26, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., at A-B Tech Conference Center. Remaining spaces are limited, so if you are still interested in attending, register as soon as possible.
The conference welcome will be given by Amy Ager, co-founder of Hickory Nut Gap Farm and Hickory Nut Gap Meats and an ASAP board member. Find workshop speakers, one-on-one session consultants, and exhibitors and buyers attending the Grower-Buyer Meeting on our website.
Thank you to our sponsors, especially top sponsors Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education, BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina Foundation, and Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority. Plus, Farm Burger is returning as our lunch sponsor!
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Farmers Market Managers Gather for a Summit
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ASAP's annual Farmers Market Summit, embedded within the Business of Farming Conference, will expand to a full day of programming this year for farmers market managers from across the Appalachian Grown region. The summit provides space for market managers to share ideas, best practices, and challenges around market governance, vendor relations, budgeting, marketing, and promotions. This year's full-day program also includes a tour of ASAP Farmers Market and features guest speakers from partner organizations.
Dr. Amieris Lavender of the YWCA of Asheville, Raven Logan of Hub City Farmers Market, and ASAP's Larissa Lopez will lead a discussion around cultivating diverse, inclusive, and equitable market spaces. Creating spaces that invite in more of the community can help build a stronger local food system. Summit participants may share successes and challenges they've experienced responding to community needs, welcoming and engaging new demographics, fostering relationships with community partners, and addressing inequities at the farmers market level.
The summit is free for market leadership, but does require pre-registration. To ensure we can engage as many markets as possible in the discussion, ASAP offers a $50 stipend per market for participating. Additionally, those traveling more than 50 miles (one way) to attend are also eligible for a travel stipend & hotel. Contact Mike McCreary to learn more.
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Free Seeds for Farm to School Programs
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 Spring seeds from our partners at Sow True Seed in Asheville are now available for school gardens! ASAP's Growing Minds Farm to School Program makes these free seeds available to public and private pre-K through 12 schools located in ASAP's Appalachian Grown region. We have more than 50 varieties, including early producing spring crops like snow peas, radishes, and lettuce. Educators can contact our Growing Minds staff at [email protected] or 828-236-1282 to schedule a time to pick up seeds from the ASAP office in Asheville.
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ASAP is currently hiring for full time positions. View full job descriptions and application instructions for all positions here. All positions will remain open until filled. Applications are accepted only by email. Please do not call or come by the office.
Program Coordinator, Local Food Campaign will assist in the design and implementation of farmer programs, services, and resources around marketing and business planning; providing outreach and support for ASAP’s Appalachian Grown program and Local Food Guide; identify, network, and maintain relationships with key stakeholders; give presentations and provide training; and other tasks in support of the organization.
Program Coordinator, Growing Minds Farm to School will assist in the design and implementation of programs including trainings/workshops for educators, farmers, community partners, parents, and volunteers; farm to school/preschool curriculum and resources; network and maintain relationships with key stakeholders; provide community outreach and engagement; assist with grant writing and reporting; and other tasks in support of the organization.
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 20 YEARS OF ASAP |
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We're celebrating ASAP's 20th anniversary! Each month we'll share the origins one or more of our programs as well as stories from farmers and others who have been with us along the way.
We held our first farming conference in 2004. Back then we called it Market Opportunities for Farmers instead of Business of Farming, but many of the workshop titles were similar (Farm Financials, Internet Marketing, Farm to Chef). Conference photography was not an early priority, but here's a shot of an early ASAP team at the reception for one of those first conferences at Warren Wilson College.
Held in the farming off-season, the conference focuses on professionalizing and building the viability of farm businesses, particularly around evolving market opportunities. The 2022 Business of Farming Conference is coming up Feb. 26 at the Mission Health/A-B Tech Conference Center in Asheville.
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 FACES OF LOCAL |
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ASAP likes to share the stories of people who help us fulfill our mission. This month we talk with farmer Noel Poindexter of Lunar Whale Herbs, a one-acre medicinal and culinary herb farm in Alexander. Noel sells at area farmers markets and offers a fresh herb CSA and apothecary boxes to connect customers to plant medicine. Meet her and find out more at the Asheville CSA Fair on March 11!
Lunar Whale offers a specialty CSA. Can you describe what customers get from week to week?
Lunar Whale Herbs offers a fresh herb CSA, which includes both medicinal and culinary herbs. In each share, members receive five generous bundles of fresh leaf, flower, or roots, depending on what’s in season, along with an educational newsletter on the properties of each herb and recipes for medicine-making and cooking. At the beginning of the season each member receives three “how-to” herbal medicine making videos and a PDF with basic medicine making techniques.
Some herbs to expect: in the spring, nettles, comfrey leaf, dandelion greens, garlic scapes, mullein leaf, arugula, chervil, claytonia, cilantro, and parsley; in the summer, garlic, yarrow, hops, boneset, catnip, feverfew, mugwort, motherwort, red clover, milky oats, sage, thyme, rosemary, oregano, wormwood, mints, shiso, tulsi, basil, anise hyssop, sweet annie, calendula, blue vervain, skullcap, chamomile, echinacea flower, lavender, bee balm, and spilanthes; and in the fall, ginger, turmeric, ashwagandha root, burdock root, yellow dock root, comfrey root, angelica root, dandelion root, marshmallow root, and elecampane root.
How are CSAs beneficial to both farmers and customers?
CSAs are beneficial to farmers because they are able to get the bulk of their income in the beginning of the season, when they are buying most of their supplies. It is also a great business model for farmers to have a guaranteed income for the season that they can budget accordingly. CSAs are beneficial for customers because they are able to have a deeper connection to a farm and know they are supporting a local business. Members are able to learn more about how farms work, experience new vegetables or herbs, and gain recipe inspiration. I also like to think as a CSA member that you are getting a "gift" for yourself every week.
What are some ways you connect with CSA members throughout the season? Do you have learning opportunities?
I connect with CSA members every share through my newsletter with plant bios and recipes for cooking and medicine making. I also host medicinal plant walks on the farm, herbal medicine making workshops, and volunteer farm work days.
Particularly as a new farmer, what have you learned about offering a CSA?
As a new farmer, I have learned that it takes a lot of work to get the word out there about your CSA and get members to sign up. Especially with a unique fresh herb CSA, there is a lot of education that needs to happen in explaining our offerings to potential customers. I've also learned that CSAs are a great way to connect with the community and create relationships with your members.
You've participated in ASAP's virtual 2021 CSA Fair as well as the in-person fair in Hendersonville this year. How has that experience helped you?
The CSA Fair experience has helped me meet new customers and hone in on my "CSA pitch." Learning how to talk to customers and show your passion for what you are doing is a great skill to have in the farming world!
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 RECIPE OF THE MONTH |
| Kale and Potato Hash Browns
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|  Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
- 1 large bunch local kale
- 2 small onions, minced
- 4 medium potatoes
- 6 Tbsp. olive oil
- Salt and pepper
Directions:
- Boil the potatoes until just tender. Let cool, then grate.
- Wash and tear or cut kale leaves into small pieces, removing tough stems.
- Over medium heat, cook kale in a skillet with a splash of water until wilted, about 3 minutes.
- Mix onion, kale, and potatoes in a bowl.
- Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add kale mixture and cook in an even layer, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are golden brown, about 15 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
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 MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS |
| "The Double SNAP program has been particularly vital during the pandemic. It not only supports farmers and food vendors, but helps community members to stretch their food dollars farther."
—Sarah Hart, ASAP communication manager, speaking with the Asheville Citizen Times about ASAP's request for ARPA funding to expand the Double SNAP program |
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ASAP's mission is to help local farms thrive, link farmers to markets and supporters, and build healthy communities through connections to local food.
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